The present invention is generally directed to a fastener assembly and method of manufacturing a fastener assembly and, in particular, to an improved tag pin fastener assembly in which individual tag pins are used for attaching tags to merchandise, and to a method of constructing such a tag pin fastener assembly.
Conventional tag pin fasteners used in attaching tags to clothing and other merchandise generally include a head section and a lateral rod section or cross-bar which are coupled together by a string or filament. The tag pin assembly is integrally molded from a plastic material. Individual tag pins are intergrally formed on a connecting rod by means of connecting necks which extend from the cross-bars. The assembly is loaded into a tag attaching gun which removes and feeds individual fasteners from the assembly such that the cross-bar penetrates the clothing or merchandise involved and becomes engaged therewith. For convenience in use, the fasteners are made in the form of an assembly which generally includes about 50 individual fasteners on the connecting rod.
Attempts have been made for increasing the number of fasteners per unit length in a fastener assembly so that the fastener assembly can be made smaller and the time for loading a new fastener assembly into the attaching gun can be reduced. This, in turn, would allow the use of more fasteners during a specified time period and consequently more clothing and other merchandise can be tagged without reloading the attaching gun.
One method for increasing the fasteners per unit length is by using a mold with thin mold walls whereby the thickness of a fastener is reduced and the distance between each fastener on the assembly is also reduced. Tests have been carried out whereabout twice as many tag pins in the same unit length have been molded by molding in a single die such that the thickness of each fastener is reduced to 0.8 to 0.9 mm and the distance between each fastener is about 0.1 to 0.3 mm. Such a method, however, requires special precision in preparing the mold since the thickness of the mold wall between the individual grooves required for making each fastener is a minute distance between about 0.2 to 0.4 mm. Furthermore, a mold having such a small distance between the grooves can be easily damaged, and thus commercial production is practically impossible.
Accordingly, it is desired to provide an improved tag pin fastener assembly and method wherein the number of fasteners per unit length is increased in order to reduce the size of the fastener package and reduce the time for refilling the fastener assembly in a tag attaching gun.